“If I was forced to – I would put my money on Ramaphosa.” Ray Hartley on the future of South Africa’s presidency at the launch of Ramaphosa: The Man Who Would be King

It was quite a gathering for Ray Hartley’s launch of his book Ramaphosa: The Man Who Would be King. He was in discussion with fellow editor and seasoned journalist Mondli Makhanya at Exclusive Books in Rosebank.

Attendees congregated around the author

The audience got to know a bit of how Ramaphosa got to where he is. But as Hartley said: “The book is not about the psychological look at Cyril Ramaphosa.”

There was quite a bit to unpack – from Ramaphosa’s early days with the Student Christian Movement to becoming a force behind the mining unions, and eventually emerging as the Deputy President in South Africa. Hartley also spoke about how integral Ramaphosa was in the Codesa negotiations and why he was quiet all these years as Deputy.

At the end of the discussion it was clear that the audience was interested in the now – would he become President and would he be able to get South Africa on the right track? Hartley’s answer was measured. “If I was forced to – I would put my money on Ramaphosa. The numbers seem to be on his side, but it’s such a close race.”